This week’s Gospel message for Sunday, March 12th is from John 4:5-42.
“Jesus came to a town of Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of land that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there. Jesus, tired from his journey, sat down there at the well. . .A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, ‘Give me a drink.’ . . .The Samaritan woman said to him, ‘How can you, a Jew, ask me, a Samaritan woman, for a drink?’ . . . Jesus answered and said to her, ‘If you knew the gift of God and who is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.’ The woman said to him, ‘Sir, give me this water, so that I may not be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water.’ Many more began to believe in him because of his word, and they said to the woman, ‘We no longer believe because of your word; for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is truly the savior of the world.’”
Reflection: “The woman in today’s Gospel comes to the well to draw water, but on this day she encounters the Messiah and her whole life changes. Over the course of an extraordinary conversation, she came to believe, and her newfound faith led her to go forth to testify to her neighbors about the Christ. Similarly, we do not deserve the life-giving water we receive in baptism, but Jesus offers it to us in mercy and love.” SOURCE: Pastoral Patterns, Spring 2023
DAILY READINGS FOR THE WEEK
Monday 2 Kings 5:1-15b; Luke 4:24-30
Tuesday Daniel 3:25, 34-43; Matthew 18:21-35
Wednesday Deuteronomy 4:1, 5-9; Matthew 5:17-19
Thursday Jeremiah 7:23-28; Luke 11:14-23
Friday Hosea 14:2-10; Mark 12:28-34
Saint Patrick, Bishop – “Patrick, the Apostle of Ireland, tells his story in his Confession. He was kidnapped by pirates and taken to Ireland as a slave, but after six years he escaped, returned to Britain, and eventually became a priest. Pope Celestine sent him to evangelize the Irish.”
Saturday Hosea 6:1-6; Luke 18:9-14
SOURCE: Living With Christ, March 2023